


We Are The Same

by ELISE_ELEVEN



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alderaan, Alternate Universe - Role Reversal, Angst, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Character Death, Dark Side Rey, Enemies, Enemies to Lovers, F/M, Fluff and Smut, Force Bond (Star Wars), Force Sensitivity, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Inappropriate Use of the Force, Interrogation, Jedi, Jedi Ben Solo, Lightsaber Battles, Loss of Virginity, Mild Smut, POV Ben Solo, POV Rey (Star Wars), Passion, Plot, Porn With Plot, Pre-Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Pre-Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Prince Ben Solo, Revenge, Role Reversal, Secrets, Sex, Sexy Times, Smut, The Dark Side of the Force, The Force, The Force Ships It, Vaginal Sex, Virgin Ben Solo, Virgin Rey, Virginity, prince of alderaan
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-13
Updated: 2018-08-29
Packaged: 2019-06-26 17:32:44
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,077
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15667953
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ELISE_ELEVEN/pseuds/ELISE_ELEVEN
Summary: Ben Solo, Crowned Prince of Alderaan, sits alone in the throne room of his families palace. The weight upon his shoulders is heavy, but tonight it will finally be lifted. His men have captured and imprisoned Supreme Leader Snoke's apprentice, and the young Jedi will serve justice that is long overdue. Tonight, he will face the truth. He will either have his revenge, or he will have something far worse.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to everyone for reading. I have been working on this project for a while now and it has become very special to me. I hope you all love it as much as I do.
> 
> This ship is my everything and Ben Solo is one of my favorite characters ever. I appreciate so much having others who feel the same to share it with.
> 
> This will be a three chapter work, with a possible sequal. There will be two chapters coming soon, so please stick around for more! And let me know what you thought and what you liked.

Ben Solo climbs the white marble steps on by one, cloak of pure white silk brushing the ankles of his fine boots. Tonight may be the night he can be free of this pain he has endured for over three years. At the top of the podium he considers his mother’s throne before settling himself in against the high-back. This night it will all come to an end. 

Ben nods to the guard at the end of the great hall, who then disappears behind one of the double doors. It clangs closed behind him and the noise echoes through the empty chamber. This couldn’t have come at a more opportune time. His Mother off planet attending a war counsel as the Resistance command base. Alderaan has officially joined the war, instead of just supporting the Resistance with resources. As the sun sinks down behind the horizon of his home planet, justice will finally be served.

“Your Highness?” The guard pokes his head back inside. 

Ben squares his jaw then gives him a solemn nod. It is time. 

Both double doors fling open and the two guards, flanking the prisoner on either side, march down the crimson carpet that stretches the length of the hall. The prisoner never flinches, never looks down; never takes her eyes away from his. The dim light from the candles along the walls glisten on her skin as she passes by each one until she stands at the base of the dais. 

“Leave us”, Ben tells the guards without taking his eyes away from hers.

The men glance at each other, uneasy about leaving the young prince alone with this notorious murderer. “But, sir?” With one firm look from Ben, they spin on their heals and march out the way they came. The doors bolt behind them and the click resounds over and over again in the still air. 

“Kahila Wren.” 

“Your highness.”

He regards her with narrowed eyes. His righteous anger is not able to quell the bit of curiosity in his gaze. The young woman before him is completely bare except for a thin, dark crimson sash hanging from her shoulders and looped around her waist, the sheer material draping down low enough the cover her crotch. Naked breasts glow golden in the candlelight. Her hair is very long and smooth. It hangs down to her waist and frames her face in dark curls. She is beautiful. She is deadly. 

Despite her nakedness, she seems neither embarrassed or ashamed. She just stares him down, chin raised, with a small smile twitching at her lips. He himself, might be embarrassed if there were anyone else here with them or if anyone but the two guards knew they were here alone. He might feel embarrassed if not for the knot of resolve solid in his stomach. 

“But that’s not your real name, is it? You weren’t always an assassin and spy for the Frist Order.”

“It’s the only name that matters.” The prisoner responds. 

“Your real name is Rey and you come from nowhere.” 

Though she still wears that wicked smile, there is a flash of something else behind her gaze. “I’m from Jakku actually.”

Ben’s fingers leave the cool marble of the throne’s armrest to rub his chin in consideration. He hadn’t expected her to be so forthcoming, so honest about her background. “Same difference”, he says with a shrug. 

He looks her up and down again, trying to keep his eyes from lingering too long on her chest or her hips. Somehow, he feels so much bolder and calmer now, not nervous, or even angry. He is in charge after all. The prisoner is bound by hand and foot by the strongest shackles they own and he has his lightsaber, as he always does, hanging at his side. “What have become of your clothes? Or were you captured in this state?” 

Wren clocks her head to the side. “I was relieved of my clothing when I tried to strangle one of your men with my trousers. Perhaps I should have saved that move until I got in here.” She smirks, “You should know, using clothing as a weapon is something I notorious for. Your guards assumed I can’t use other people’s clothing as well as my own, but you may want to dispose of yours, just to be safe.” 

Ben feels heat bloom on his cheeks and clears his throat loudly. “Thanks, but that won’t be necessary. You’re not the only one with a connection to the Force.” 

“I know.” Her eyes lock on his and burrow into him with a fascinating intensity. “I felt it the moment I entered this palace. Wren shifts closer, eyes darting back and forth between his. “You don’t need to be afraid, Ben. I feel it too.” 

Ben’s neck snaps straight as he breaks eye contact. For the first time he realizes he has somehow been subconsciously sensing her feelings, and she has been attentive to his. Ben swallows hard and takes a moment to collect his composure and defenses before, again, meeting her eyes. So, she feels it too, this calming, familiar feeling that rests between them and has been slowly drawing them closer to each other. But this shouldn’t be possible. He can’t have any connection to this murderous snake. She must never know how strongly she calls to him. 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Wren simply rolls her eyes and lets out a long sigh. “Oh, Prince Solo, there’s no use trying to hide anything from me. You know I can take whatever I want.”

Suddenly she is there again, in his mind, rifling through his thoughts, emotions, and memories without ceremony. Ben sucks in a sharp breath. The sensation is intrusive and uncomfortable, like fingernails scratching away at a wound that has not yet healed. “No you can’t”, he growls through clenched teeth and shoves back with all his will. He must get her out of his mind. There are things hidden there that no one, most of all her, can never know. He pushes back against her piercing presence, driving her back the way she came. Uncle Luke had prepared him for so many fights against other force users, but never one like this, never one for personal. 

All of a sudden her force recedes and he finds himself buried in a sea of her emotions: anger, confusion, fear, wonderment, attraction, defensiveness, and self-doubt. He is in HER mind now. And he dives in deep, towards the things she’s trying to keep hidden. 

Wren staggers back as Ben leaves her mind with a great upheaval. She fixes him with a guarded, furious glare. Ben can’t help but smile a little at his triumph. “You’re afraid of disappointing Supreme Leader Snoke; that he’ll punish you again like he did last time you failed. He tortured you”, Ben realizes, “He electrocuted you.” 

The guise of smugness and confidence is gone. Wren bares her teeth at him, fists curling below the thick metal cuffs. This was not going the way she has planned, and she is spitting mad… but also scared… of him, of how easily he had thwarted and overcome her. But this only brings him temporary satisfaction. It has been seared into his mind forever, the image of her face in vulnerability and anguish as her body was caught in a web of blue Force lightning. 

Needing to clear his mind and look somewhere except her eyes, Ben stands from his seat of marble and paces in a small circle around his mother’s throne. Wren waits patiently, intently watching each step. She feels every emotion like heat vibrating from the surface of his skin. 

Abruptly, Ben halts midst of pacing. “How can you still follow him? How can you let him control you when he treats you like that?” 

Wren appears surprised to see that anger in his eyes are not directed at her, but at Snoke. “You wouldn’t understand. You hardly have all the information.”

“I saw what he does to you. And I saw that you never fight back… even though you want to.”

“Snoke is my master. He guides me as I grow stronger in the dark side and in my own character. You don’t know him. The Supreme Leader is wise and just, strict yes; but everything he does is to mold me into the person I am meant to be.” 

Ben shakes his head and runs a hand through the length of his dark hair. “You are a fool if you believe Snoke is doing anything but using you for your power.” 

“I’m not a fool, that’s for sure.”

“Then you are aware that he is using you?”

Wren is getting angry again. Her eyes flash with an intensity that simultaneously makes him want to draw back and move in closer. Why is he so drawn to her? 

“I would be nothing without the Supreme Leader’s guidance. I was born on Jakku to drunkards. They were nobody. They sold me for drinking money and then withered away and died somewhere in the dessert, without a soul to remember they existed.”

Ben settles down on the edge of the throne, leaning forward, elbows on knees and chin resting on folded knuckles. He is intrigued that someone with such power and reputation could have come from such humble beginnings. 

Voice raising in volume, Wren continues. “I became a scavenger to survive, blindly believing my parents would someday return to save me. The person I was then was foolish and week like the people who brought me into this world. Then one day, a miracle happened. Snoke sent his most trusted General down to collect me and bring me to him. He had sensed my growing power in the dark side and searched long and far to find me. The Supreme Leader became my master and teacher, showing me great kindness as I was integrated into the Frist Order. There, I found the direction and belonging I had been seeking for all my life. This all happened when I was thirteen years old. Do you know where I would be if Snoke hadn’t found me?” She focuses on his dark eyes, challenging him to answer. 

“Still on Jakku?”

“Still on Jakku”, she repeats in conformation, “scavenging with only a quarter portion to show for a full day’s work, barely surviving. I would be nobody. I would be nothing. I would be better off dead.”

Her breaths are deep and passionate as she lifts one foot to rest on the bottom step of the pavilion so that she can lean forward, closer to the young prince. Her voice drops an octave and is barely a whisper when she spits out her next words. “I can never repay Snoke for the power he granted me to take control of my own life. Do not dare presume that I don’t understand the darkness inside of me and the darkness inside my master. I am responsible for everything I do. Not him. Not anyone else. I don’t do anything I don’t want to. And when I fail, there must consequences, so that next time, I won’t fail again.” 

Her darkness is deeper and stronger than Ben could have expected. It frightens him. He has never met anyone like this fearsome dark side user before. She is doing strange things to him, coaxing him in with her interesting backstory and intriguing connection to him. Why is he so attracted to her? How has he forgotten why she is here? How has he let her distract him for his only purpose? 

“You’re right. You are responsible for all the pain and suffering you inflict on the galaxy. Snoke has never forced you to do anything you didn’t want to. He didn’t keep you from searching for your parents or forbid you from forming connections with anyone else. Did he really never let you become romantically involved with anyone? Have you never been with anyone before? Is this the only time you have been naked in front of a man before?”

From beneath her eyelashes, she casts him a glare that is beyond anger; it roars with the heat of a thousand suns. This is unfettered, unapologetic fury. It hits his chest like white-hot blades of steel, actually causing him physical pain and throwing him back against the throne. The ground rumbles and shudders under her feet as her muscles spasm with rage. Her raw, untamed power surges through the room and through ever fiber of Ben’s being, heart pounding; all he can do is stare at her. He has struck a nerve. He had penetrated far deeper into her soul than she had realized. 

A moment later, her face is cleared of all emotions. Without struggling at all, Wren has gathered it all up and tucked it back inside herself, now the personification of control and calm. How many times has she had to do this in the presence of her master, hide away every emotion rather than face punishment. Nothing betrays what lies beneath, except her clenched fists and a slight tremor in the muscles of her forearm. She is as frigid as ice. 

Ben would almost rather face her anger, than this stony statue before him, than this nothing. As she lifts her head to show him a slightly amused smirk and he grows angry. But he doesn’t control it nearly as well. The poor Prince has always worn his heart on his sleeve. 

“I usually prefer the man to get undressed first, actually. I’m making an exception for you, but I expect-.” Kahila Wren responds to his earlier question, a smirk slithering onto her lips. But he cuts her off. Chest heaving, he lurches from his seat and bounds down the steps until he is baring his teeth in her face. “Stop. Stop”, he shouts. 

“Stop all this pretense.” Ben’s voice is eerily quiet. “I saw everything. You live in constant fear that Snoke will know when you lust after that General from level 34, because he knows everything. He sees all of your mind, your every intent. You hid yourself away in a dark locker with that dark-haired Lieutenant when you wanted him to be with you. He had barely put his hands on you before Snoke froze your body and had his guards torture you for days and days on end. He forbade you from having any contact, any connections. So, you lie there in only darkest hour of the night, when you can only hope he is asleep, desperately touching yourself to find even the slightest pleasure.” Ben’s dark eyes search hers, yearning for that violent reaction, but her face is still as stone. 

“You have never been with a man before. You can’t know what it is like. You can only imagine. You are afraid you will never get the chance, but you’re also afraid that you will and it won’t be worth it after all.” He moves around her in a slow circle and surveys every inch of her body. As he takes her in, a deep yearning grows inside him. “It does make you uncomfortable that I’m the first one to ever see you.” With brief moment of courage, he lashes out and yanks away the last strip of clothing from her body, leaving her completely bare. She is so beautiful. She is so deadly. 

Ben is finally rewarded with the reaction he’d been waiting for. Wren flinches away from his touch and shrinks in on herself, legs squeezing together and fingers clasping over her crotch. Fear and anger mingle behind her stiff smile. This isn’t enough. He needs her to react like before. It is so much easier for him to hate her when she feels the same. He needs more. 

With resolve clenching in his gut, Ben moves around behind her. “Would it make you uncomfortable if I were to touch you?” 

She forces herself to smile and add suggestion to her voice. “I don’t know if uncomfortable is the word I would use. Depends on if you know what you’re doing.” 

A growl strains from Ben’s throat and then he is there with her, pressing his body against her back. His hands are at the soft, pale skin at her waist, gripping it hard. The dark side warrior sucks in a sharp breath and her body tenses. All her vibrato is slipping away. She tries to lean away from him, but he holds her tighter and breaths heavily in her ear. 

She seems so small when tucked in against his large frame. Is she shaking? 

The light prince slides his calloused fingers along the softness along her ribs and places both hands over her breasts. Awkwardly Ben holds the warm flesh in his palms, unsure of what exactly to do. His breaths heave in her ear and strands of her silky hair, disrupted by his panting, fall into her face. The couple is stone still in the quiet chamber, holding their breaths. 

Then, suddenly her body relaxes beneath his. A cruel chuckle stills his heart. What is she laughing at? Is she laughing at him?

“Yes Ben, it makes me just as uncomfortable as it does you. It makes me just so uncomfortable to have a virgin prince touch me in the most unsensual way possible. You called me unexperienced, but at least I tried to get some action in while my master was distracted. You haven’t even dared to think of defying him, your great and wise master, Uncle Luke. 

“Yes, you’re not the only one saw the things that were meant to be hidden. Your master has forbidden you from forming attachments with anyone because you are a Jedi. And, you have obeyed him faithfully. You’ve never been with anyone either.” She leans into him, head on his shoulder and ass against his growing arousal. Wren presses even harder and he tenses. “What’s the matter, Solo, does this make you uncomfortable?” 

Ben lurches back, nearly tripping over his cape. His hands jerk away from her skin as if it were shaped from molten lava. Shame turns his face a flaming red as he hides it from her, doubling over as emotions rush through his veins at a parsec a minute: uncertainty, rage, fear, insecurity, hurt, distrust, betrayal, foolishness, confusion, vulnerability, disappointment, worry, ache. 

After a few deep breaths, the Prince steels himself. He marches by her, not even bothering to glance over, and sits again upon the throne he will one day inherit. No more delaying the inevitable.

It’s time to finish this.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “All those things contributed and we disagree with basically everything you all do on a fundamental level. But, that is not the true reason we are at war. There is one reason that is at the core of our hatred for the First Order, the reason we will see the First Order destroyed.” 
> 
> Despite her intention to appear withdrawn, he’s intrigued her. There’s momentum in the words he’s about to say. 
> 
> “Do tell.”

“Do you know why we are at war with the First Order, why I have captured and brought you here?” His Highness, Prince Ben Solo looms above Rey on his pristine throne, in his pristine, white garments. She would love to see him get them dirty. She would love to watch him draw that lightsaber at his belt and cut his mother’s throne to ribbons in a fit of rage. She knows he has is in him; she has seen the darkness swirling deep within his soul. 

Rey is still reeling and out of breath from the strange encounter they’d just experienced. Even though his movements had been rough, awkward, stiff, and not at all sexy, the whole thing had nearly stolen her breath away. She is still fighting down waves of arousal. Rey clears her mind of the memory of his lips so close to the tender flesh of her earlobe and neck, and the how firm his hips and chest had been against her. She still has a very long way to go before the night is over. 

“Your people refused the Supreme Leader’s gracious offer to join the alliance against the Resistance. Instead, your mother continues to provide aid and assistance to the rebels, ignoring the many warnings we sent her. We had no choice but to react with hostility when we encountered your army on Zadeeom 1. What an unfortunate incident. A shame one of your mother’s favorite officers- Ackbar I believe- was killed.”

Ben clenches his fists, face dark. He must have known the officer well, grown up around him even. It is no wonder he is upset at the mention of his demise. 

“I believe it is a culmination of all those things that have pushed our people to war and have led us to this very place and moment.” Rey cocks her head at him so that she can look him directly in the eyes. Her neck is growing stiff from having to look up at him. She wishes he would come back down from his platform. The distance and height probably make him feel superior and in control, but, most importantly, keeps the attraction and energy between them at bay. She would like to even the playing field.

“You’re not wrong.”

“Oh good.”

“All those things contributed and we disagree with basically everything you all do on a fundamental level. But, that is not the true reason. There is one reason that is at the core of our hatred for the First Order, the reason we will see the First Order destroyed.” 

Despite her intention to appear withdrawn, he’s intrigued her. There’s momentum in the words he’s about to say. 

“Do tell.” 

Ben’s eyes leave her to lose focus as he gazes into the past. “It was nearly three years ago”, he sighs and shakes his head like he can’t believe its been so long, “I had just turned twenty-six…”

\---------------

A younger Ben Solo slept in a large bed in his chambers on the third level of the grand palace. His hair was shorter and askew across his forehead. He was so peaceful in sleep, despite having a moodier disposition during the daylight hours. 

The previous day he had spent many long hours training under Uncle Luke. They had started the day learning a new technique of combat then had spent several hours meditating and mind lifting. That had been their first session in months. With the growing power of the Frist Order, other force users needed Luke’s guidance more and more. In fact, the inevitable war had caused most of his family members spend much of their time away from Alderaan. His father, Han Solo, was on a visit to a nearby planet to discuss worries with a close ally family. 

Something woke him out of a deep sleep, maybe a noise, maybe a sensation, but one moment he was asleep and then next his eyes were open. Something prickled just under his skin: danger. Something was wrong or was about to be. Was the force trying to warn him? From outside his room, on the stairway, there were a series of muffled noises. Ben sat straight up in bed, hand reaching automatically for his saber. It flew into his hand with a smack and he griped it tightly. 

Normally, he would have thought it was a guard or droid going about their work in the hallway beyond, but all his senses were telling him there was something dangerous coming, coming- for him. 

On silent toes, the young prince crept across the cold stone on his bedroom floor to the wide doorway. Ben pressed his ear up against the large wooden door, the rough grains scraping against his cheek. The shuffling noise was definitely coming from the top of the stairs, just down the hallway from his room, and getting closer. Steeling himself, Ben renewed his grip on his saber, then opened the door and swept out of the room in one swift motion. 

In the hallway, he moved into a defensive position to face an attacker, but there was no one in the space with him. Suddenly, there was a cry from the direction of the stairwell. As he hurried forward, keeping his footsteps soundless, a red right lit up the walls at the top of the steps. Ben’s brows tucked together, and his eyes narrowed as waves of goosebumps raced across his arms, shoulders, and back. What was this? His connection to the force was telling him to run the other way and yell for help, but something inside him was far too curious. If someone intended to harm him or his family, let them come and see what wrath a Jedi knight could muster. This Jedi could handle any threat posed to him. 

Ben froze at the sight of two figures standing a few steps down, their shadows stretching dark and looming against the wall behind them, in the fiery red glow. On of the men held, in his hand, a red lightsaber, the weapon of a Dark-side user. The other man was his father. 

Before ben could ignite his own saber and before Han Solo could draw his blaster, the dark side warrior thrust his lightsaber through Han’s gut, impaling him all the way through. 

Time seemed to slow. Ben let out a strangled gasp. The intruder turned to see the Prince at the top of the landing and stiffened. Retracting his saber blade, he turned and bounded down the stairs and fled into the night. Ben’s attention refocused on his father just in time to see him leaning precariously against the railing overlooking the open entry room below, arms outstretched to his son. “Ben”, he gurgled barely above a whisper. The Jedi took two shaky steps down toward his father; to help him, to hold him. Han’s only had time to reach out and brush three fingers against his son’s cheek before loosing his balance and toppling over the railing. 

“No!” Ben cried out as he lunged forward to catch him but only grasped empty air. Han Solo hit the solid floor below with a sickening thud. 

Ben Solo hung over the rail, face slack in shock, tears dripping from his eyes, starring at the twisted body on the ground below him. His father was dead. 

\------------------------  
Prince Solo has his back to Rey as he finishes the story, hand gripping the top of the throne beside him until his knuckles turn white. He does not want her to see his face, though Rey can feel his pain just as clearly through their bond. For the first time she lets her true emotions show on her face. She feels for him, truly. he had seen his father murdered in front of him. No matter who you are, no one should have to experience something like that. 

She gives him his moment of silence to collect himself before clearing her throat. “I’m sorry”. 

Ben straightens his shoulders and lifts his head. When he turns again he penetrates her with a gaze so intense she can only stare back. If he is comforted or surprised by her words or obvious sympathy, he doesn’t show it. It nearly takes her breath away, the way he searches her eyes, the way he seems to already know her so well.   
“Are you?” He suddenly, forcefully demands. 

“W-what”? Rey splutters. She is taken aback. 

Ben begins pacing the length of the dais. He presses his palms together and rests them against his puckered bottom lip. “On the night my father was killed, someone with a red lightsaber and a dark presence entered this palace undetected. This person must have been a Sith or a user of the Dark Side. I sensed great power in this individual. They were no ordinary dark-side sensitive.” 

With each turn in his stalk, Ben takes a step down and closer to her. “Do you know what I saw on the sleeve of this person as they turned to run in cowardice?” He doesn’t give her a chance to reply. “I saw the insignia of the First Order. That means that the First Order had sent an assassin to kill my father because he openly opposed Snoke. Initially, I had suspected Snoke himself, but that doesn’t seem his style or something he would dare do himself. We believed it to be either a hired assassin or someone under the employ of the First Order. It is very unlikely that someone who had been hired wouldn’t want to remain anonymous. They would be smart enough not to leave behind a clue. This must have been the work of a person within the ranks of the First Order.”

Where is he going with this? “I considered that it Snoke might have sent one of his favored Generals, but then I remembered none of them are Force users. Force users are few and far between in this part of the galaxy, and even fewer are those who use the Dark Side.” 

“Are you familiar with the Rule of Two?” Ben pauses mid-pace, head still bent and brow creased, but doesn’t look at her. 

“I am”, she replies in surprise. Of course she is. 

He doesn’t let her continue. The Prince is only gaining momentum. 

“It is a practice of the Sith. Unlike the Jedi, the Sith prefer to keep their numbers low. I’m not entirely sure why, Uncle Luke didn’t want to talk much about that, but they do. There are always two: the master and the apprentice.”

It figures his uncle would keep that information from him, Rey thinks. 

“I realized Snoke must have at least one apprentice, maybe several. Snoke could have started training a whole school of Dark-side users. He isn’t a traditional Sith, but there must are always at least two. We hadn’t heard of anyone like that… until now.” His eyes swivel around and land on Rey. 

“Word has spread across they system of a powerful apprentice who does Snoke’s dirty work for him. She is like a ghostly reaper; deadly and distant. They say she wears a mask. For the longest time I didn’t know who she was or anything about her… until now.”

“There are always two”, Ben absently pulls on the cuffs of his white tunic, eyes downcast, “the master and the apprentice. Snoke is obviously the master…”  
Rey barely realizes he’s coming until their noses are inches apart. “That makes you the apprentice.” His voice is deep as a mining cavern and deadly serious. 

Now she knows where he’s been going with this.

“That’s why we are at war with the First Order. That is why we captured and brought you here.”

“You killed my father, Wren.”

“What!?!” Rey is so shocked that she actually begins to laugh. “I what?”

“This is not a laughing matter!” He snarls. 

“You’re insane. You think I snuck in your home and killed your father? I hate to ruin your theory, but I didn’t murder him. I am a lot of things, but not an assassin. That’s not how I operate. I kill in times of war. I kill who I have to in order to win this war, not random kings that Snoke happens not to like.” 

“Why deny it? I already know the truth. It seems like someone like you would jump at the chance to brag about your accomplishments.” His lips, his full lips are so close to hers now. 

“I am, but this wasn’t my kill or accomplishment. You’ve got the wrong person.” Rey reaches out with their bond and tries to empress it in his thoughts. 

“I don’t believe that.”

Discovering something, Rey grins and cocks her head. “Actually, you do. You don’t truly believe it was me. She shifts even more into his space. “You just want someone to blame… so that you don’t have to blame yourself anymore for not getting there in time. 

Ben shudders with disgust and blows a hot growl out around his clenched teeth. “No. You are guilty. You won’t get away with what you did to my family.”

Oh dear, Force Almighty! If she had been feeling anything before, arousal and deep need have washed it away. All she wants to do is taste those quivering lips. 

“You are guilty”, he insists, “You did it.” 

“No Ben.” She is all sincerity. “I didn’t. And you know that. You need to blame someone, I get it, but that’s not me- or you. Ben.” Rey’s voice is tender. She tries to reach out to him, but only grazes his fingertips before the shackles restrain her and she drops her hands. Searching his face, she sees his anger slipping away. 

 

“I could help you find the one who really did this. If you let me in your mind, I might be able to find the murderer. Rey’s eyes roam the Prince’s face, hair, throat and chest in curiosity. I would see so many things if you let me inside that head of yours. Ben swallows thickly, eyes lidded and wanting. 

 

“So many secrets. You have so many secrets Ben. What would I find behind those defenses?” She licks her lips without meaning to. “There is something buried down deep, something no one must ever know, a secret more well hidden than any other. You have a secret, Ben, a terrible secret.” Rey can’t help glancing down at his lips again. “Could it be you already know who killed your father?”

The older man turns huffs and turns his back to her. But doesn’t move away. All the pretense and defensiveness has drained out of him. “I know who killed him. It was you.” He says without conviction. “That’s why we captured and brought you here.”

Suddenly she annoyed. “You keep saying that. I was captured. Are so sure I was actually captured? You really think your men could overpower me? Maybe I let them take me. Maybe I wanted them to bring me here… to you.” 

Back still to her, he turns his head slightly in her direction. “And why would you do that?” His tone is soft, careful, and on the brink of hopefulness. 

“I told you before, I sensed your presence right away. Maybe I felt your power from across the galaxy. Maybe we were connected long before now and I needed to meet you, needed to see what kind of person could be my equal and my opposite.” 

Rey breaths shallowly now, wanting only him. Her eyes never leave his face. “Maybe I was drawn here, drawn to you.” 

He slowly moves to stand before her. Now finally they’re on the same level. Rey’s mouth falls open as his eyes flick between her lips and longing eyes. He wants her just as badly as she wants him. 

Before she has time to breathe, Ben’s mouth is on hers, so strong and smooth. One of his palms cups her jaw, while the other is a gentle pressure at her waist. He is so desperate for her. Never has Rey felt this passion, this need. Her kisses match it. 

Ben’s fingers curl in her hair as her pulls her even closer. Rey deepens the kiss, slipping her tong into his mouth. He stiffens a moment at this, but then grips her even tighter, sliding his large hand to the small of her back. She leans into him so that their torsos are pressed together. Her arms tug impatiently at the wrist restraints.   
She wants to touch him so badly. If she were free, there isn’t a place she would let her hands roam. But somehow their constraint heightens her arousal. Some part of her likes to let go of control. 

After several moments of passionate kissing, Rey knows they both want more. She feels so ready, but she’s also nervous and can sense that he feels the same. His hands have only caressed her neck and her waist. She wants to set them free. 

Pulling back from their kiss, Rey looks Ben in the eyes. His are half lidded and pupils are large. Her gaze flits to his lips, parted and panting, before ducking in to place hers against the edge of his jaw. The Jedi swallows hard. 

“It’s alright Ben”, she whispers into his ear. And then, with the Force, begins to strip the layers of his clothing away. She leaves his cape on his shoulders; but besides that, he is completely naked before her. He is glorious. All that combat training has left his skin a tapestry of smooth curves and dips of muscle. He reminds he on the white stone statues in the temples she’s visited many years ago as a part of her dark side instruction. He is so perfect, unblemished, unscarred. Not like her. Rey’s body is spattered with scars and imperfections. He is perfect. Perhaps he is thinking the same thing about her as he surveys her flesh. If only he knew. 

As she intensifies her kiss on his jaw and their naked bodies brush together, Ben finally gathers his courage and begins to explore. Ever so slowly his hand slides across her waist and down to the curve of her hip. The other set of fingers run up and down her back until they rest on the plane of her lower back. Rey feels the dampness growing all over her body and softly bites at the side of his neck. This only excites him. Both hands slip down to cup her backside and pull her right up against him. She feels him grow even harder against her hipbone.

They both fall over the edge and the couple loses all nervousness and uncertainty, intertwining and tangling up in each other. They are inexperienced and messy and awkward, but they know what they want. Both give in to the desires they have repressed for so long. No one can stop they now. 

Fumbling, kissing, and groping, Rey pushes the young Prince back towards the stairs. He falls back onto them. His backside hits with a loud smack. Panting, Rey kneels between his knees and then leans her head back as he kisses the curve of her throat. 

Suddenly, he pulls away and searches her face with narrowed eyes. She can’t help biting her lip. Why doesn’t her get on with it? Ben’s eyes are so deep and dark you could lose yourself inside for a thousand years and never want to come back. Rey thinks that is a wonderful idea. There is indecision in his eyes. About what? He carefully considers a moment then runs both hands down her arms to her wrists. Abruptly, the shackles fall away and hit the ground with a resounding clank. Rey gasps are the sudden loss of pressure messages the indented skin. 

When she looks back up into his eyes, they are wide and pure and full of trusting. He trusts her. She almost feels guilty. He really shouldn’t trust her. 

But, oh, how good it feels to touch him after waiting so long! Any guilty feelings are banished at how right it is. If possible, he feels even better than he looks. She nearly comes to the height of her arousal just by curling her fingers in the sweet-dampened locks at the nape of his neck. 

Ben slides his arms under her ass and picks her up. Rey leans into him and wraps both arms around his neck. It feels so good to be held. It almost brings tears to her eyes. She lays her head on his shoulder and breaths in the sent of him. She doesn’t want to let go, but as he maneuvers them around, sets her down on the step, and spreads her legs to kneel between them; she finds herself damp and ready for him. 

Ben plants both arms on the same step, on either side of her torso, and fences her in. As he leans forward, he pushes her back until her spine is pressed into the steps above. The blood in her veins hums in anticipation. He kisses her again with a blazing intensity.

When he enters her, she breaks their kiss with a cry, then immediately dives back in to bite at his bottom lip as he pants. Rey’s hands cup his shoulder blades, tearing flaws into the perfect skin with her nails. They are a roaring fire. 

The Prince peppers her neck and chest and breasts with kisses and tiny bruises as he edges ever closer to climax. No space separates them. They meld together into one being. All of Ben’s defenses, both mind and body, slip away as he gives her everything. Rey opens up a piece of her mind to him, letting him feel everything she feels; while he lets it all go and lets her in to every part of him. All those conflicting emotions, thoughts and, sensations are enough to overwhelm her. She would like to do the same thing for him- wishes she could let go- but there are things even he can never know. 

“Rey”, Ben breaths in to her ear. He says her real name like it’s a sacred thing. Again, she feels a pang of guilt, but sweeps it away. 

Rey yanks painfully hard on his hair as she climaxes. The waves rack her body as she moans and then cries out. The muscles in her toes spasm. Her head stretches backwards as her back arches. Then she falls forward to sink her teeth into the tender flesh of his shoulder. 

The young Prince is so close. He pants into the slickness of her chest, all muscles ridged, pumping hard into her. He yells as he finishes, and it makes Rey grin like an idiot. She runs her fingers through the length of his hair as he collapses against her. 

Rey is still smiling when Ben’s breathing slows enough to sit up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks so much to everyone for reading and liking! I truly appreciate it. 
> 
> I do love a good enemies/lovers story. I guess that's why Reylo is my favorite ship of all time. I'm also a big fan of tragic backstories, complicated relationships, and layers of secrets. So, stay tuned for more of that. 
> 
> There will be only three chapters to this work, so I'll be posting the final one very soon. Also be on the lookout for a sequel story possible coming later. I'm so excited to share it all with you! 
> 
> Please let me know what you thought/liked.


	3. Chapter 3

Rey is still smiling when Ben’s breathing slows enough to sit up. She brushes a few strands of hair from his forehead and he leans into her touch. A small contented smile plays at his lips as he reaches out to wrap her up into his arms- then he notices her smile. Ben pauses. Something is not right about that smile. Why does she look triumphant? 

“Oh Ben”. Rey chuckles smugly and lift his chin with one finger. 

Her whole demeanor has changed. What is going on? There is a sinking feeling in his chest. 

Rey laughs a high-pitched, delighted laugh. “It was you.”

“What?” His skin prickles. 

“You did it.” 

He jerks his head away from her hand and casts her a confused frown. “What are you talking about?”

The smile she gives him then is terrible, greedy. Her eyes are full of poison. 

“You killed your father.” 

The Prince’s body stills and then he is clambering backwards down the steps, nearly tripping over his own long legs. When he is safely at the bottom, he looks back up at her. She looks so powerful up there, so in control. 

“How dare you suggest such a thing? You dishonor my father!” 

NO! No! No. 

Rey shakes her head at the pathetic young man below her. “Please, Ben. I think you at least owe me the truth.” 

No. No no no no no no. 

“I don’t owe you anything”, he snaps. 

“Admit it.” Her voice is quiet and very calm. “I am the last person to judge you.” 

No no no no no no. 

“No! It’s not true.”

“Ben”. Rey descends a few steps and tries to look him in the eye. Her tone is soothing and her expression is softened. “I know. I saw it in your mind. You opened your mind to me and I saw everything. That was your big secret. You killed him.” 

Pain sears Young Solo’s heart and he fights to breathe normally. 

“Admit it.” Rey draws nearer. 

“Ben… Say it.” 

Tears prick his eyes. 

“I killed my father.” 

\--------------------------

A younger Ben Solo woke from his worst dream so far. He sheets were damp with sweat and crumpled from tossing and turning and balling his fists in the fabric. His large bedroom was empty and deathly quiet, filled with the pale glow of moonlight. Snoke’s voice still echoes in his ears. 

Ever since he had begun training with Uncle Luke several years ago and opened himself up to the Force, something dark had been creeping into his mind. At first, he had no name for the veiled presence that haunted his dreams and followed him though the darkest hours of the night; but no longer. It was called Snoke. And it never left him, no matter what he did. 

At first the Supreme Leader didn’t speak to him directly, but as time went on, he began to whisper. Ben’s own doubts and fears were reflected back at him as the voice pushed him ever closer to the darkness. 

Why didn’t the Prince tell his parents or his uncle about this invasion? 

Because, the voice had been telling him how much darkness there was inside him. No matter what he did, it wouldn’t go away. It would only keep growing until it overcame him. Ben had felt it; he knew it was there. The voice told him that if his family ever sensed that darkness, they would be disgusted and horrified, and they would cast him out. They might even have him imprisoned or executed. It told him they would realize what a monster he was. And he believed it. 

Uncle Luke had been away much of the time in recent months. They hadn’t had a lesson in many months before yesterday. It hadn’t been particularly enlightening or any relief from his torment. Ben was growing so tired of pretending to be fine. And so tired of the nightmares. 

This night had brought him the worst of all. 

He had been lying in his bed in the dream, sleeping soundly. A small noise had jarred him from slumber to find he wasn’t alone in the room. He had opened his eyes to find three figures stand over him: his Mother, Father, and Uncle Luke. Their faces were half cast in shadow, like the part of their face had been ripped away to expose nothingness, and the other halves reflected green from Luke’s extended lightsaber. Each of them had weapons in their hands and they were all pointed at him.   
Ben shrunk back in horror. His lips tried speak his mother’s name, but he found he had no voice. His eyes landed on his Uncle’s and he tried to plead with him.

“Monster”, Uncle Luke snarled. The hatred and disgust in his eyes was enough to smother. ‘No’, Ben tried to say as he shook his head. Please. 

“Monster”, Han echoed, his blaster extended in his son’s face. 

Leia shook her head in disgust. “You are a monster! Just like Darth Vader”, she spit. 

“Monster. Monster. Monster.” They repeated it over and over like a chant to ward off evil spirits. They attacked him as one, each weapon falling on the helpless young man. Ben tried to call on the Force to ward them off or call his own lightsaber, but he had lost all power. 

Snoke’s voice was the last one to call him monster. The last thing he had felt before he woke, was an agonizing pain in his chest.

Ben Solo had never felt to small and helpless as he did on that night. His heart was still racing, and he couldn’t get the images of his families’ murderous faces out from behind his eyelids. 

A noise in the hall made him nearly jump out of his skin. His heart thundered in his chest and his fists clench in his sheets. He is terrified. It was them. They had finally found out who he really was and they were coming to finish him. 

Flinging back the bed clothes, the young man jumped out of bed and crept across the cold floor on silent toes. His lightsaber was lying on the table beside his bed, and it shot into his hand as he passed on his way to the door. He slid his fingertips across the glossy wood and presses his ear against the crack in the door. There was definitely a shuffling out in the hallway, at the top of the stair, and it was getting louder. 

With heart racing, Ben swung the door open and ignited his saber as he stepped out to face his assailant. He was met with an empty corridor. He crept down the hall with all senses tingling and alert. The icy silence only amplified the voices from his dream lingering in his mind and the rustling at the hall’s end. 

Suddenly, as he rounded the corner, Ben is faced with his father. The older man whirled around at the sound of his son’s sharp intake of breath. Han’s blaster was drawn and then trained on his son and squinted into the darkness. Ben shrunk back at the fierceness on his father’s face. “Who’s there?” 

The Prince swallowed and clicked off his saber. He steped into the dim light of the stairwell, but didn’t reply. There was still fear and dread living in the pit of his stomach. What is his father doing here in the middle of the night. ‘Monster.’ Why did he have his blaster out and ready to fire?

‘Monster.’ 

Han squinted up at his son before he finally realized who it was. He dropped his blaster arm to his side and let out a sight of relief. “I thought I heard a noise up here.”  
‘Monster monster monster.’

“Ben?” Han took two steps closer to him. 

Ben shrunk back a step and clasped his hands around his saber’s handle. Han noticed his behavior and took one step back to study his face. “Son?”   
‘Monster.’

Something was wrong with Ben’s vision. Dark spots crept in around the edges and the world seemed to be swaying beneath him. For a moment, his father’s concerned expression was replaced with a murderous snarl, but then flickered back to normal. When Han spoke, it sounded far away. “Son, what’s wrong?” He tried to move closer, but Ben stumbled back. He extended his hand and saber to keep him back. 

‘Just like Darth Vader.’

Han’s mouth fell open in surprise to find the lightsaber pointed at his chest. “It’s alright, son. With both hands, he reached out, grabbed the saber hilt, and tried to gently take it from Ben. It didn’t budge. The young man kept his fingers locked around the weapon. 

Why is he trying to take it from me? Why does he want me unarmed? To kill me? Does he know? Does he know that I’m a monster? 

‘Monster monster monster monster monster.’

He was swaying and dizzy. The voices in his head were too loud. The whispers had turned to screams. Han pulled harder on the saber, desperation pricing his dark eyes. He was afraid, afraid of his monsterous son. “Give it to me, Ben.” Ben’s vision was shaky and cold, fear piercing his veins. He would not give in. He was not a monster. Han’s face flickered again, and his voice screamed in Ben’s mind, telling him how wrong that was. No, no, no. He was not a monster! 

“I’m not! I’m not!” Before the Jedi Prince knew what he was doing, his finger had stretched out and ignited his saber. “I’m not a monster!” 

The blade went straight through Han’s chest with no resistance. It was like a hot knife through butter. The blue beam skewered the King right through the front and out his back. Han’s eyes flickered up to his son’s face as he fell back against the railing. Shock and horror froze Ben in place. A disconnect formed in his brain between reality and belief. No, no, no, no, no. 

As he fell, Han reached out to graze his son’s face one last time. His eyes rolled back in his head and the lids closed just before he hit the ground. The boy lurched forward to catch his father, but his fingers only grasped air. 

Ben Solo hung over the rail, face slack in shock, tears dripping from his eyes, starring at the twisted body on the ground below him. His father was dead. 

\----------------------

Ben Solo’s voice cracks as he finishes. Regret and despair hunch his shoulders. He is a broken man- who hides it well. 

Patiently quiet throughout his story, Wren finally speaks. 

“I’m proud of you, Ben.” 

He jerks his hear back to stare at her. 

“I knew there was darkness in you. I sensed it before, but this proves it.” The confusion that clouded his head moments earlier it is clearing rapidly. 

“When I was young, I always sensed a great darkness in the Force, but I also sensed a great light. The Supreme Leader is the darkness. And, I didn’t know until he pointed it out to me, the light was you.”

Things are falling into place, too quickly. 

Rey- Kahila Wren- continues with enthusiasm and conviction warming her voice. “I failed to see how that was a good thing, until he told me that with that much light inside you there was an equally strong pull of darkness. You are a child of a royal and powerful bloodline. Of course, you would have potential for both. With the flip of a coin you could have been a Dark-side user. I mean, Luke Skywalker is your uncle- but also, your grandfather was Darth Vader.”

Ben takes a few steps back, averting his eyes, and clenches his fists at his sides. Darth Vader. The Prince remembers well the day seven years ago, when his mother first told him who had been the cause of their existence: the murderer and tyrant who had nearly caused Leia’s planet, Alderaan, to be destroyed by the Death Star. Darth Vader had no influence over him. Ben had never even met the man. 

“Then I realized just how important you are, you can be. Snoke didn’t know just how dark you had gone. Neither of us knew what you had done. That is why Snoke sent me; to find out your secret.”

Everything is crystal clear now. Ben has never felt more betrayed. This woman, who he just given himself to and shared such venerability with, had been sent by his enemy to discover his secrets. “So, everything you’ve said and done since you came here was a lie.” 

“No, Ben.” Rey sinks down on the stairs before him to look into his downcast eyes. “What I told you before was true. I did come here because I was drawn to you. I was. I was drawn to your power and potential for darkness and-.”

He cuts her off. “And, you thought me week enough to let you use me.” 

“No”, she shakes her head, “That was never the intention.”

“No!” This time it is Ben’s power that shakes she walls and floor beneath them. “Do not lie to me. I’m done listening to them.” He is growing very, very angry. 

“Ben”, she says warningly. Wren holds out a palm more to keep him calm than to reassure him. “Listen. Now you don’t have to feel alone. I know exactly how you feel, the darkness inside, and I can help you. Snoke and I can be a family who will accept you. We would never judge you for killing your father like your family would.”

Whispering, “I didn’t mean to”, he then shouts. “I didn’t mean to kill him!” The prince rakes his fingers across his face. “I don’t want to feel the darkness inside, I want it gone. It is the thing that caused all this suffering. You don’t understand how I feel. You enjoy your kills. When I killed him, I was torn apart and I will never fit back together!”

“You can if you give in fully to the darkness. I do understand. We are more alike than you think.”

Solo catches her off guard with a force push that sends her sprawling sideways. “You’re a liar. Will you ever stop trying to take advantage of me?”

With a huff Wren retaliates in kind and climbs to her feet. “Fine Solo! You’re right. I did take advantage of you. I knew Snoke couldn’t be mad at me for shagging you if I brought you back with me. I knew you would fall for me without even having to try. Snoke would reward me and I could have my way with you whenever I want.” She grins wickedly. 

Ben growls. He knows what she says is true, but it still stings. 

The two circle each other like wild animals. “I should have just continued to play you, instead of telling you my true mission. How foolish of me. No matter, I’ll still succeed by killing you.”

With a flourish of her hand, Wren slams the Prince back against the stairs where they just made love. She uses the Force to hold him there, pressing his spine into the points of the steps until he cries out in pain. The young woman has no weapons, but only needs the Force to inflict damage. Weapons. Ben remembers his lightsaber that had been clipped to his belt. He uses all his strength to stretch his hand out and call the saber to his hand. 

The saber is ignited and swinging in a wide arch with one motion. Wren is forced to jump back to avoid the blue blade. Ben is on his feet in a moment with the cross-guarded saber between them. 

“That’s quite a weapon.” She is visibly impressed, “You should see mine.” Wren nods with a knowing smile. “Double-bladed.” 

“Impressive”, he growls. 

Wren laughs. 

Ben swipes again but she spins out of the way just in time and then flips backwards as he again tries to attack. He is taller and stronger, and has the advantage of a weapon, but she is quick. Her intelligent eyes flicker around the room as they access the situation. She has an even quicker mind. 

Before he has a chance to blink, she is charging straight at him. Ben is taken aback by her brashness but readies himself and swings his saber once she is in range. At the last second Rey drops to the floor and slides under his strike and kicks his legs out from under him as she passes. He stumbles and nearly impales himself with on the small cross guard blades. 

He has barely swiveled onto his back when he hears Wren’s bare feel pattering on the marble behind him and she flies through the air above his body. As an afterthought, Ben reignites his lightsaber into the air above his chest. Damn, this woman has instincts like a cat. She extends her leg mid-jump and course corrects just in time to avoid the large blade. The tops of her toes pop him in the groin as she glides over and push hard off his exposed hipbone. 

The Prince groans and grips his genitals in pain as the other hand continues to whiled his only weapon. When he shakily gets to his feet, he sees is was not the only one injured in their tussle. There is a small spatter of blood at her feet and a shiny line of blood paints the inside of her left leg. The tip of his saber must had grazed her inner thigh as she jumped. Knowing that he got a hit in, makes his feel a small amount of accomplishment. It feels like a small victory. 

The Dark-side apprentice probes the wound with her fingertips for a moment before glancing up at Ben with a wild grin. “Now the fun begins.” She absently wipes her bloody fingers on her naked outer-leg. They leave behind a crimson swipe. The location of the wound is just below a place he has recently very intimate with and the fresh memory and the sensual gesture have aroused him again. He is reminded that the are both still naked and covered in each other’s fluids. The Prince will have to try extra hard to make sure she can’t see his arousal. He has rip his eyes away from the crimson stain her fingers left on the bare flesh. 

“Give up, Your Highness.” Wren is confident as ever, and from the way she keeps eyeing his body she might also by turned on by the heat of battle. “I have actually been in combat where I have to fight for my life. You can’t say the same. You might know the technique, but you don’t have the instinct to improvise. You’ll never win.” 

“Snoke severely overestimated you. I warned him that you weren’t as powerful as he thought you were. He never listens to me.” Wren shows him all her teeth. Her hair is askew, a wild mane around her face. But she is still beautiful. Force, he just wants to jump her. 

“You underestimate me.” 

“No, Your Mightiness. You have far to high of an opinion of yourself. You allow yourself to become too distracted.” Ben raises his eyebrows in skepticism and Wren gestures at her own body. You haven’t been able to keep your eyes off me this whole time. Then she gestures at his crotch and smirks, “You’re clearly excited.” The Prince flushes with embarrassment and anger and casts himself a glance. 

He lifts his head again to a spray of rocky debris raining down on him and puncturing the skin of his face. Ben coughs and tries to shield his face while scrambling back, trying to put as much distance between them. When the dust clears, he can see part of the wall, that was weakened by their Force tantrums, has been yanked away and flung at him. Before there’s a chance to recover, she flings him against the wall hard enough to knock out his breath. 

“See, so easily distracted.” Wren shakes her head in mock disappointment and stalks toward in like a large cat. She is the most beautiful. She is the most deadly.   
Ben tries to summon his strength in the Force to right himself, but she has a firm hold on his body and continues to probe insistently at his mind’s defenses. He can’t clear it with all these distractions. Wren stands before him and crosses both arms over her bare chest. “Poor young prince. Did you bump your head?” 

He can feel a sharp pain in the back of his skull and a warm drip of blood tickling his neck. He has been wounded. If he could only get a grasp on the Force again and reclaim his body, he would, again, have the upper hand. But, there are so many distractions. 

The young woman shoots her arm out to the side, fingers splayed, as if grasping the air. She bares her teeth and grunts in concentration before a long copper rod slaps into her palm, accompanied by a screeching and cracking of metal. Using the Force, Wren has ripped away the tall metal base of one of the candlesticks on the walls. She grins wickedly, and, as she pulls her arm back to hit him with the rod, her hold on him weakens.

The moment his feet hit the floor, Ben is ducking to the side and swinging his lightsaber in a clean arch. Light connects with metal and goes straight through. The rod is seared in half and Wren jumps out of the way to avoid being next. 

He continues to swing at her with his saber, but she continues to dodge each one and get in a few blows of her own with her two pipes. Ben slashes and she spins to the right, bends over, and hits him hard on the outside of his thigh. Then he spins his weapon in a deadly arch, but she darts in and prods him with piece of rod. They weave in and out, like two partners in a passionate dance. Blood drips down from wounds on both sides, and they dance through it, leaving behind crimson footprints of mingled blood.

Wren is putting up a good fight, but there is only so much a stick of metal can do against a laser sword before is it cut away. They both know he will win at this rate. Wren loses half of one of her pipes when it connects with the saber, and the other falls from her hand when it tip of the blade connects with the back of her hand.   
In a last-ditch attempt, Wren attempts to burry the remaining rod in his side. She swoops in under one of his jabs but slips on a pool of blood. She falls on her side and the momentum rolls her across the ground where she collapses a few feet away. Her makeshift weapon hadn’t succeeded in impaling him, but did leave a deep, long scratch under his ribcage. 

The Young Prince stalks toward her, knowing the battle is nearly won. Wren struggles to stand and tries to summon the Force to save her, but she is week from blood loss and battle. “You’re week and foolish”, she says through gritted teeth. “You don’t deserve to obtain the powers of the Dark Side. If you were a real man you would face me without a sword!”

Ben is amazed that she is still trying to antagonize him. Perhaps she hopes to distract him again, but surely she can see it will only make her death come more swiftly.  
“You’re such a coward. A coward to never have taken a woman. A coward to be a slave to your Uncle and the Light Side. A coward to still live in the house of you Mother and not have taken the throne. A coward to be afraid of Snoke!”, she attempts to hit him with a Force push, but he is ready to block it. “A coward to be afraid of me!” 

Rage blooms inside him.

Again, Wren tries to attack with the Force, but is countered. One foot slides out from under her and she falls to one knee. But still she doesn’t stop. “You’re a coward to hide what you did to your Father! A coward not to own how you murdered him in cold blood!” She takes a shaky breath as he looms over her. “I wish you hadn’t killed him, so that I could have done it myself, and made you watch every agonizing second!”

Her final words are cut off when Ben spins his saber in a lightning-fast arch that splits a long gash open in her face. She hits the ground with a slick thud and lies there for a moment while Ben pants and growls above her. He is shaking with anger. 

Pitifully, Wren manages to prop her arms under her and sit up half way. The wound on her face is horrifying to behold. It stretches from the middle of her chest all the way up to her eyebrow, narrowly missing the eyeball. Seared and charred, the wound is oozing blood instead of spurting. It makes Ben’s stomach churn to see.   
Finally, the time has come. He will finally accomplish the mission he had so carefully concocted. Ben will have peace restored to his family once again. He will kill this murderous snake, call in the guards, and announce that his Father’s murderer is vanquished. Mother and Uncle Luke will return and rejoice at the wonderful deed he has done, avenging Han Solo at last. The whole nation will celebrate and praise him for his courage and wisdom, and may even insist that he become King. He will no longer live with guilt and, most importantly, there will never be a chance of anyone finding out what he had done, because they will be content with the fiction he had constructed. His life will finally be returned to balance. He can be fully connected to the Force, once again. 

The Prince lifts his sword in the air high above his head. Both hands lock around the firm handle as he prepares to release the death blow. 

Wren hisses through her teeth and she lifts her face to meet his gaze. There seems to be no more fire behind her blood-soaked expression. “Don’t hesitate. Do it. Kill me. Let your hate flow through you, guide you. Hatred and anger will forge you into the most powerful man in the galaxy. Surrender to it. Give in. Surrender to the Dark Side!”

His arm begins to fall, but he catches himself and pauses, mid-swing. Her words break through the fog of furry and finally register. 

“No. Don’t stop!” Her words are on the verge of desperate. “Surrender to your anger. Embrace the Darkness! Kill me!” 

Ben just stares at her. 

Wren’s voice raises in pitch and urgency. “Do it! Kill me! Just bloody do it!!!”

He studies her face, her eyes, her stance. There is no conviction there. All he sees is fear and pain. She doesn’t mean, hasn’t ever meant, what she’s saying. She has only spoken them as provocation, to push him all the way into his anger. These words aren’t even hers. They are only an instruction from Snoke. 

Snoke. Everything is his fault. He is the one to blame. Without Snoke’s influence he wouldn’t have killed his father, and this poor young woman would not be so deep within the snares of the Dark Side. He can’t blame her for the sins of her master. Only Snoke’s death can satisfy the fire for vengeance. 

“I won’t.” Ben Solo lets his arms fall to his sides and he clicks his saber off. There is no more need for bloodshed tonight. He fights to steady his heavy breathing.  
“What? No!” There is real panic in Wren’s voice and wide, darting eyes. 

Ben remains resolute. 

“You’re a monster.” Wren tries, halfheartedly. 

“No, I’m not! You’re the monster for letting Snoke control you.”

After a moment of silence, she turns her shiny eyes on him. “You’re right. I’m the monster. Not you. You’re a good man. Snoke haunted you for years. He was the reason you killed your father. He deserves to die for that.” 

With more confidence, the warrior struggles to her feet. A lone tear slips from the corner of her eye. “Let the past die, Ben. Kill it if you have to. Let them all die; Snoke and the Jedi. Join me. We could take over and rule the galaxy together. Our way. We wouldn’t have to listen to anyone or let them hurt us anymore.”

Ben stands still, watching her, uncertain. 

Wren take a step toward him and holds out her hand. “I want you to join me. Ben we have this connection that is stronger than anything I have ever felt. And beyond that, we have so much in common. We are both so lonely and both long to be free of our masters. We are the same, you and I.” 

This strikes a nerve with the young man. “No, we’re not!” He snaps.

“We are”, she insists, drawing even closer. Her voice is tender and soft, venerable for only him. “We are the same!”

“We can do so much. We can have anything we want. We don’t have to be alone anymore. Ben.”  
Slowly, he begins to shake his head. “Don’t, Rey.”

“Ben, please. Join me.” 

“I can’t.” There is something so tempting in the offer, but he knows it would be wrong. “I can’t, Rey.” 

With his last bit of resolve, Prince Ben reignites his light saber and positions it between them. “Leave, Rey. Go right now.” 

She just stands there in shock and wordlessly, shakes her head. 

“I am sparing your life.” He presses his saber closer to her. “Rey, go. Now!”

With pain and betrayal written clearly across her features, Kahila Wren casts him one last glance before turning on her heels and stumbling down the hall and out the door. When he hears the outer doors clang, he knows she’s really gone. 

With a heavy heart and spirit, Ben Solo calls his clothes to him, dons them, and slowly climbs the marble steps, once again. He is exhausted, both mentally and physically, and only wants to curl up to sleep. But, like a true Prince, he settles himself on the regal straight-backed throne and straightens his neck. 

The Crowned Prince Ben Solo of Alderaan surveys the long Throne Room, covered in smears and footprints of blood and rubble. Tomorrow, there will be a lot of cleaning to do. But, for now he will sit on his Mother’s throne and meditate. He will begin work on a new plan, a plan to take down Supreme Leader Snoke. And finally have his justice. 

The End

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't believe I've finished my first work. This was such a passion project for me and I'm really proud of how it turned out. 
> 
> I love Rey and Ben/Kylo so much and loved creating alternate versions of these beloved characters. I am so anxious thinking about Episode 9 and its killing me to have to wait so long to find out their fate! I'm seriously so scared. 
> 
> Thanks to everyone for reading. I appreciate all the likes and comments! Please let me know your thoughts, likes and questions! I would love to discuss.


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